Masoor Dal Tadka

Here's something for this year's Purim vegan meal.  I'm quickly discovering that Indian food is a wholesome go-to for my veg/vegan rotation.  It's also a good way to run through my collection of chometz legumes and pulses.  Normally, it would also use rice, but I had this with the avocado chapati.  I had also put on a pound finishing the faultline cake, so it was diet week.

Dal is Indian for lentils, and Masoor Dal are red lentils.  Tadka is the cooked spice mix you stir into them, and you're done.  I had everything for this dish on hand.  It's cheap, nutritious, and as spiced as you want it.

This version is roughly a half-recipe of the one out of The Curious Chickpea.  I found out after finishing this post that I have a very similar Dhal recipe from a couple of years ago on this blog.  I should have tried spelling variations when I was checking.  This version is even easier, because you can use canned tomatoes.  I made a couple of minor changes, and omitted the chilis for my personal use.  Feel free to add more salt if you prefer.

*1 C red lentils
1 Tb oil (ghee for non-vegan)
1 C finely diced onion
*3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 Tb grated fresh ginger
1 or 2 diced chilis, or to taste
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
*3/4 C diced tomatoes (or 1/2 a can)
*cilantro for garnish

1.  Sort lentils and rinse until the water is clear.  Sorting means to inspect the dry product for stones or other things that shouldn't be in the package.  Red lentils need a lot more rinsing than brown ones.  I don't know what the soapy, cloudy stuff is, but in quinoa that look is slightly toxic.  I rinse my red lentils a lot.

2.  Add water to the lentil saucepan to cover by 1".  Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer.  Cover and cook while the tadka is going.

3.  In a large skillet, heat oil over medium.  Add onion, garlic, ginger, chilis, curry, mustard, cumin, and salt.  Cook until onion is very soft, about 5 minutes.  Add tomatoes and cook until they break down, at least 10 minutes for fresh and 5 for canned.

4.  Remove lentils from heat when not quite done.  They should be just barely starting to split and lightened to a yellowish-orange.  If there's still standing water, drain some of it off.  It's ok if there's still water at the bottom.

5.  When the tadka is cooked, add the lentils.  Fold until combined, which is when the remaining water in the lentils will disappear.  Serve hot, garnished with cilantro.

Difficulty rating  π